A remarkable UFO incident that occurred in the skies over Athens over a year ago but was kept secret by the Greek Aviation Authority and the Greek Air Force, has recently come to light and is receiving extensive media coverage in Greece.

A recording of the conversation (in Greek) between the pilot involved and the airport control tower has been made public. A copy of the official document named 'Lightning 2' commanding two F-16's to intercept the UFO can be viewed below.

On 11 October, 2007, at 3:20 am, the captain of Olympic Airways flight 266 from Athens to London noticed an extremely unusual object moving erratically to the west of Athens. The object was somewhat star-like in appearance, however much brighter and larger with a constantly shifting shape.

Meanwhile the captains of Olympic Airways flights 730 to Kos and 700 to Rhodes reported the same thing. The sighting was then confirmed by Athens Airport control tower, whose employees observed the object moving towards Karystos, a small town on the Greek island of Euboea. At this point the Greek Air Force was contacted.

The Greek Air Force confirmed that they too were visually monitoring the object from their radar station at the top of Parintha Mountain near Athens, and had observed that it was traveling at incredible speed, and did not fit the description of any terrestrial craft.

The staff at the Air Force radar station later described the UFO as large, of an unusual shape, and very bright. Air force staff were requested to photograph the craft and did so (no pictures have come to light yet).

At this point two F-16’s were sent up to intercept the UFO, while the various control towers monitored the object from earth. The object then shot off at incredible speed skyward, and the Jets failed to indentify anything. While both staff at the Athens Airport and the Parintha Mountain Air Force Radar Unit confirmed that they clearly observed the object their radars picked up nothing.

The ensuing deliberate cover-up of this incident by the Greek authorities is being treated as fact by that country's media.

Possibly the most bizarre aspect of this sighting is that although the object was witnessed simultaneously by three pilots with decades of flying experience between them, staff at multiple radar and ground control stations and the Greek Air Force, who actually sent jets up to chase it, says it has been dismissed by some Greek Government officials as a mistaken sighting of... wait for it… Venus!

This, despite the fact that the captain of flight 266 remains convinced he saw a UFO. With that in mind, are these Government officials planning to request an investigation into the capability, if not sanity, of their country's Air Force ground control staff? Don’t hold your breath.

It is hardly surprising, that if indeed aliens are visiting earth they would take an interest in Greece, that cradle of western civilization. What is more surprising is western media’s complete non-coverage of this incident, and the continuing and sometimes absurd attempts by governments to deny the obvious as far as UFOs are concerned.

Perhaps the ancient Athenian culture of intellectual curiosity and questioning existing belief systems has been replaced by one of secrecy, concealment, and the idea that the public does not have the right to know what is happening in the universe around them.